Motorcycle customization is a strong tradition among certain motorcycle riding communities. Custom motorcycle paint, exhaust, and fender systems are very popular. These customs have been further popularized by televisions shows such as “Orange County Choppers.”
Decorative lighting systems have been proposed as one possible customization option. Such lighting systems can illuminate the wheels and/or the body of motorcycles. Lighting systems for motorcycle wheels provides a unique nighttime glow to the owner's vehicle.
Various decorative lighting systems have been conceived and/or implemented in automobiles, including underlighting and wheel well lighting systems. United States Patent Application No. 2003/0223243 A1 (Miller) discloses an illuminating automobile wheel device with light emitting diodes (LEDs) mounted on a circuit board, which is mounted onto a wheel. U.S. Pat. No. 7,079,042 (Reim) discloses a system for providing illuminated displays on a vehicle wheel having LEDs mounted on a tire and also having a vehicle rim to display lighted messages. U.S. Pat. No. 6,789,928 (Khan) discloses a lighted wheel rim system having a wheel body with voids, so that LEDs and a battery are mounted within. U.S. Pat. No. 6,641,041 (Olds et al.) discloses a system for directing a short burst of bright light onto rotating indicia on a vehicle wheel which makes the indicia on the rotating wheel appear to be stationary. U.S. Pat. No. 6,601,979 (Byrd et al.) discloses a wheel illumination device having a brush assembly in electrical contact with concentric conductor rings on a slip ring assembly mounted to the wheel. U.S. Pat. No. 6,322,237 (Lee) discloses a lighted wheel rim system having LEDs mounted within the rim of a tire. U.S. Pat. No. 6,116,763 (King) discloses a wheel illumination device requiring no external power and using magnetic and rotational forces to power the LEDs, however, such a system is inoperable when the wheels are not rotating.
Other prior art references include U.S. Pat. No. 5,800,035 (Aichele), which discloses a wheel lighting apparatus using fiber optics to illuminate a vehicle wheel; U.S. Pat. No. 4,881,153 (Scott) which discloses a vehicle wheel lighting system that comprises a disk assembly having conductive rings on a slip ring assembly mounted to the wheel; U.S. Pat. No. 4,430,692 (Papadakis) which discloses a wheel lighting apparatus using fiber optics to illuminate a vehicle wheel.
Other prior art references include United States Patent Application No. 2007/0058384 (Khan) which discloses a hub mounted electrical transfer assembly located adjacent the brake disc. Khan also discloses the transfer of electrical energy and control signals from a stationary electrical conductor at a fixed location on a motorcycle body to a rotating wheel. Also United States Patent Application No. 2002/0145330 (Abbe et al.) discloses an LED lighted ring on a motorcycle wheel. Abbe et al. also disclose a circuit board mounted to a rim of the tire ring which carries a pair of LEDs aligned with each of the apertures or openings on the rings.
The prior art devices use a number of different power systems, however, none of the prior art systems provide a generally-applicable design for a slip ring power transfer assembly to provide power to electrically operated lighting elements in a wheel that can be sold as a kit for installation in motorcycles made by many different manufacturers.